“Aubrey Brianne, get your ass down here right now!” Victoria yelled.

“Coming…” Aubrey appeared at the top of the stairs, staring down at her mother. “Yeah?”
“What is this?” Victoria demanded, holding up a positive pregnancy test.

Aubrey’s mouth dropped open. “Where did you get that?” She ran down the steps, snatching the stick from her mom.

“Out of your car.”

“Why are you going through my stuff? That’s my car!”

“Last time I checked, you were still living in my house and didn’t have a job.”

“You and Dad don’t want me to move out and get a job. How can you just go through my stuff mom?”
“Well when were you going to tell? When you’re ready to have the damn thing? Who is the father?” Victoria plied her daughter with questions.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Aubrey said flatly, heading back upstairs.

“Your father is going to love this.”

Aubrey stopped dead in her tracks. Her father was big on no sex before marriage and she was his only child, he was going to be mad. Aubrey turned around and went back down the steps. “Please don’t tell him mom. That’s all I’ll ever ask. I don’t want to break daddy’s heart. He’ll never forgive me. Just give me a couple days mom.” She begged.

Victoria shook her head. “I can’t do that to your father. He deserves better than this and we both know.”

Aubrey sat on the edge of the couch and shook her head. “Mom… its John’s.”

“Aubrey, he’s twenty-seven, that’s way too old for you honey.”

“He will take care of the baby, I know he will.”

“What about when he’s gone?” Victoria asked gently.

“I’ll still be here!”

“You know it will never work out between you two. He’s so much older and has a life outside of a 19 year old and a baby. What was it, just a one night stand Aubrey?”
“No. We’ve been dating for almost eight months mom.” Aubrey admitted.

Victoria gasped, she couldn’t that her baby had been keeping this from her.

John had been a family friend since he had bought the house next door, three years before. Victoria’s husband, Tony, had helped John keep up on house and yard work when he was on the road. Tony and John were always hanging out when he was home.

“So all this time your father and I’ve been letting him into our house, letting him spend time with our family and treating him like a son and he’s been sleeping with you?”
“Mom, it’s not like I didn’t want it to happen. Getting pregnant, no, it wasn’t planned. But he knows about the baby and wants to be there for it.”

“Aubrey, I have to think about this. I can’t about this anymore.” Victoria left Aubrey there and went to her bedroom.

Sighing, Aubrey retreated back upstairs. There she lay down on her bed and called John’s cell phone.

“Hey hon.” He greeted.

“My mom knows.”

“About what?”
“About us and the baby. She went through my car and found the test. John, what am I going to do? My dad is going to kick me out.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m coming home tomorrow; we’ll move you into my house.” John reassured her.

Aubrey started crying. “Do you honestly think this is going to work?”

“Yes, I truly believe that you and I can. I love you Aubrey.” He told her.

There was a long pause. This was the first time John had ever said those words to her.

“I don’t know what love is John but if I feel this way about and it’s not love, I don’t want to know what love feels like.”

John couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “Don’t get upset Aubrey. If she tells your dad and he starts in, go to my place. You got a key. I’ll be home in the morning.”

“For how long this time?” She asked.

“Two weeks.”

“I’m home.” Came Tony’s voice from downstairs.

“I got to go, bad things are about to happen, my dad’s here.”

“Okay, call me later.”

“Talk to you later.”

“Love you.”
“I love you too.” Aubrey replied then hung up. She frowned, hearing her mother talking to her dad.

 “What?” Aubrey heard Tony yell. She sat on the edge of her bed when she heard her parents coming up the steps. Tony stormed into her room; she had never seen him so mad.

“Dad…” Aubrey was cut off by her father holding up his finger.

“How could you do this?” He demanded.

Victoria stood in the doorway. “Why would you get involved with someone like John?”
“Dad, you don’t really know him. John is a good guy.” Aubrey said softly.

“I didn’t say he wasn’t. But John is older than you and has already established his life, you haven’t. You’re still a baby yourself.”

“It’s going to be fine. Everything will work out and be fine.” She reassured him.

“No, you need to get your own place and a job. You’ll always be my baby Aubrey, but I can’t welcome all of this into my home.” Tony told her.

Aubrey let the tears she had been holding back fall. She couldn’t believe that her father was doing this. “Okay dad, you don’t have to worry about me, I’ll be out of your house sooner then you know.” She pulled the travel bag from the closet.

“You don’t…”

“No dad, I’ve made an adult decision and now I’m going to show everyone that this baby isn’t a mistake. John and I will raise this baby together.” Aubrey explained, packing her clothes.

“Aubrey, don’t do this. You can stay here as long as you want.” Victoria said.

“Mom, you knew this was going to happen. So just let me do what I have to do.”

Tony and Victoria watched her pack. Neither one could believe that Aubrey was just going to leave them. Victoria wiped the tears from her eyes when Aubrey gave her a hug.

“I love you both, I’ll call later.”

Aubrey grabbed the keys and cell phone off her bed and left. She put her bag in the backseat of her car before getting in herself. Before backing out she looked at the house she had grown up in. This was never the way Aubrey had pictured leaving, but deep down inside Aubrey felt good to be leaving home.

Aubrey drove the car to John’s house and parked in front of the garage. She got her bag and went into the house. Once inside, she sat on the couch and turned on the television. Making herself comfortable, she called John.

“Hey.”

“Hi. What are you up too?” She asked, flipping through channels.

“Nothing much, getting something to eat with the guys. What about you?”
“Not much either. Sitting at your house. My dad told me he wasn’t raising another baby and I needed to move. So I got my stuff and left.”

“Well no one ever asked him to raise this kid. Oh well… What did he say when he found out it was mine?”

“I don’t think he was too happy but he really didn’t say much.” Aubrey answered.

“We’ll see. I’ll be home early in the morning. What time is the appointment?”

“Not until four-thirty. I have classes in the morning.” Aubrey replied, stuffing a Cheetos in her mouth.

“Okay. I’ll call you before I get on the plane tonight.”

“Okay, talk to you later.”

“Okay, love you.”

“I love you too.”

The two hung up. Aubrey couldn’t wait for John to get home. He had been gone almost three weeks.

Aubrey woke up to the sound of the bedroom door opening. She rolled over and seen John standing in the doorway.

“This is something I could come home to more often. The sexy mother of my first child lying in bed.” He said, crawling in next to her.

Aubrey chuckled. “Well this is something I could get used too also.”

John wrapped his arms around her and cuddled in next to her. “What time do you have school?”

“College, at six.” She replied. “What time is it?”
“Almost three.” John reached over and set the alarm clock. When he was done, he rolled back over to Aubrey and watched as she fell back asleep, then he too went to sleep.

Aubrey walked in the front door from her classes to see John sitting on the couch going through his mail. He looked up at her and smiled.

“Ran into your dad today.”

“What did he have to say?” She asked, sitting next to him.

“Nothing. He gave me this look then went back in the house.”

“I have to get around.” Aubrey laughed, getting up again.

“How far along do you think you are?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. Almost five months.”

John looked at her wide mouthed. “That far?”
“Yeah, I didn’t have a period for four months before I took a test.”

“Well maybe we’ll find out the sex as well as the due date.”

Aubrey smiled and nodded. She went into the bathroom and changed.

When they arrived at the doctors, Aubrey filled out paperwork while John watched. Once completed, they sat there and waited.

“Excited?” She asked.

“Very. How about you?”
“Yeah.”

“Aubrey?” A nurse called from the doorway.

They stood up and followed her back into an empty room.

“I’m Jennifer.”

“Aubrey and this is John.” She introduced.

“Okay, let’s get started. We need a urine sample and we’ll do the ultrasound. So let’s get you filled up with water.” Jennifer said.

“Okay.”

Jennifer handed Aubrey a glass of water before asking, “When was your last menstrual cycle?”
“It was like the second week of February.”

“Okay, so you are going to have a due date of November 16th, give or take a couple days. Also, it’ll put you at six months or so.” Jennifer explained.

“Did I wait too long to come in?”
“No, we will do everything here. Tomorrow though before you eat, you need to go get blood work done. I’m going to get the ultrasound tech and let her know. Just press the green button on the wall when you can’t hold it anymore.”

“Okay.” Aubrey nodded, starting another glass of water.

John waited until Jennifer was gone before asking; “You had no clue this whole time?”
“None. I haven’t been sick at all. I thought I was over stressed and that’s why I haven’t had my period. Then I noticed this.” Aubrey raised her shirt and showed him the pouch that was forming.

“This gives us a little over three months to get everything around.”

“Are you still excited?”
“Of course. I want to find out what it is though.” John smiled and rubbed her stomach. “Finally going to have my own baby.”

“It isn’t just yours.” Aubrey smiled and kisses his cheek. “I have to pee.” She whispered.

John chuckled and pressed the call button.

“Okay Aubrey, are we ready?” A new nurse came in.

“Yes.”

“I’m Sarah, your ultrasound tech.” Sarah led them down the hall to a dark room. “Okay Aubrey, go ahead and lay down. John there’s a chair for you.” After they were situated she said; “For six months you sure are tiny.”

“Yeah. I never thought I would be six months with just this.” Aubrey replied.

When Sarah was ready she began showing them the baby and measuring different things.

“Are we finding out the sex or not?” She asked.

“Yes.” John said immediately.

“Okay, well from what is going on here… You’re going to be the proud parents of a baby boy.”

“It’s going to be John Jr.” Aubrey told John with a smile.

John and Aubrey walked out of the doctor’s office, hand in hand with big smiles on their faces.

“Are you hungry?” John asked.

She nodded.

“Let’s go get something to eat.”

“Sounds good to me.”

They were both quiet on the ride to Chili’s. Once they arrived the two made their way into the restaurant where John found an empty table, pulling out a chair for Aubrey.

“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” He replied, sitting across from her.

“So what do you think about everything that has happened so far?” She asked.

“Some of it has been pretty messed up but you moving in and everything with the baby has been exciting.”

“It’s all been a change for me. But school will be done soon.”

“We’ll figure something out, don’t stress over it. We have a lot to get ready for in the next few months.”

“I know but I feel bad because I don’t have a job. No money to help get anything. You know, I feel like a bad mom and the kid isn’t even here yet.” Aubrey told him, almost bursting out in tears.

“Don’t worry about it. You’re going to be a great mom. We’ll put together a nursery and you’ll finish school, everything is going to be great.” He assured her.

“Okay but doesn’t it feel weird to have a baby with someone still in school?”
“If it felt funny I wouldn’t have done it.”

Later that night John and Aubrey were setting up the nursery. John had left the room as Aubrey went through all the bags they had brought in.

“John, come here for a minute.” She called.

John appeared in the door holding a rocking chair.

“Oh my god.” She covered her mouth.

“Try it out.” He set the chair in the corner.

She sat in it and smiled. “It’s great, I love it John.”
“I got something else for you too.” He said, sitting in front of her.

“What?”
“Aubrey Brianne, I’ve known you it seems forever. I’ll be the best father to our baby and a great husband. Will you give me the chance to show you that? Will you marry me?” He held out a box with a 24 karat diamond ring to her.

Aubrey’s mouth dropped and she started crying. “Of course.” She sobbed out through tears.

After he put the ring on her finger, Aubrey jumped into his arms.

“I love you, forever. I promise.” He whispered in her ear.

The End!